lioness her old brat-punk band, Be Your Own Pet, made her out to be: the psycho hose beast given to brute-force food fights, bouts of psychological/emotional extremism and devil-may-care crosstown bicycle jaunts.
No, at the moment, she doesn't so easily fit the "Wild Woman Out of Control" slot in the "9 Types of Boyfriends & Girlfriends" rubric Matt Groening conceived for his Life in Hell comic strip. Instead, we're calmly discussing Break It Up, the twentysomething's breakout solo debut, the title referencing both Pearl's favorite Patti Smith song and her recent move from Nashville to NYC, along with, perhaps, BYOP's dissolution.
These Day-Glo yet meticulously arranged songs channel her former willy-nilly punk energy into oft-chilling, omni-rock self-examinations. If 2006's Be Your Own Pet and 2008's Get Awkward were charmingly slapdash portraits of the young artist as a whirling, flailing dervish, Break It Up represents an attempt to evolve — personally and artistically. Thunderous, turbo-charged "So Sick" revels in BYOP's trademark anarchic ecstasy, but it's as much of a red herring as Pearl's insistence, on "Looking for Trouble," that "I feed on your nightmares / I'm living your worst fears."
Pearl describes the new songs as "little vignettes" addressing things that have happened to her.
"Break It Up is far more autobiographical than any BYOP stuff," she explains. "I had to figure some shit out — I think maybe this record was me figuring some shit out. It's like a journal entry, but you get to put it to music. It's cathartic to put it in a song, but way too personal to talk about in person with anyone."
To that end, "Nashville Shores" swaths her former hometown in surreal non sequiturs that recall early B-52s: "Stinky skies, trash runs deep / Neon bikinis and purple hair / It's all picked over, like no one cares / Coca-Cola kisses and sunburned eyes."
This nostalgia and revulsion commingle with a Slurpee'd guitar blare courtesy of former BYOP guitarist John Eatherly, who served as Pearl's writing partner and handled primary instrumental duties. The sentiment, of course, is hers.
"I think moving away from the town you grow up in is good, for everyone," she says. "When everyone has known you for so long, you can't grow."
Pearl perks up when talk rolls around to tender misanthropes-in-love ballad "I Hate People," a duet with none other than Iggy Pop. Producer John Agnello suggested the collaboration; the Stooges front man recorded his vocal in Miami and mailed it out. The veteran's willingness to contribute (Pearl and Pop met briefly at a 2006 UK All Tomorrow's Parties fete) moved her deeply.
"I've been a fan of Iggy Pop since I first found out about punk, when I was 13 or 14," she gushes. "I felt so overwhelmed when I heard the vocal, I started to cry — not only that Iggy would know who I am, but that he would like a song I wrote enough to sing on it."
NEWS FEED
Congratulations to Backslash, who won the first annual Texas High School Rock Off this past Friday at House of Blues, with Disfunkshun coming in second and The Handshake third. Other groups that competed were The Paperwaits, Useful Information and Living Vicariously. Backslash received $500 and an opening slot for a touring band TBD at House of Blues.
LOCAL MOTION
Top Sellers
Cactus Music, 2110 Portsmouth, 713-526-9272
www.cactusmusictx.com
1. Norah Jones, The Fall
2. Black Joe Lewis & the Honeybears, Tell 'Em What Your Name Is!
3. Townes Van Zandt, Live at the Old Quarter
4. Soulhat, Live at the Black Cat
5. Blackroc, Blackroc
6. Nick Gaitan & the Umbrella Man, Nick Gaitan & the Umbrella Man
7. xx, XLXL
8. Arc Angels, Living In a Dream
9. Tom Waits, Glitter & Doom Live
10. Lyle Lovett, Natural Forces
AIRWAVES
The Boxx
97.9 FM, www.theboxhouston.com
Top songs, January 8, Data from www.yes.com
1. Birdman feat. Drake & Lil Wayne, "Money to Blow"
2. Trey Songz, "Say Aah"
3. Trey Songz feat. Drake, "I Invented Sex"
4. Jay-Z feat. Alicia Keys, "Empire State of Mind"
5. Mary J. Blige, "I Am"
6. Drake feat. Young Jeezy & Lil Wayne, "I'm Going In"
7. DJ Mr. Rogers feat. Party Boyz, "Flex"
8. Ludacris & Shawnna, "How Low"
9. Candi Redd, "Independent Bitches"
10. Slim Thug, "Thug"
(lists compiled by Chris Gray)
